Topic 3

Dr Anees Ahmad Bangash

1.3 Mass and weight
1 State that mass is a measure of the quantity of matter in an object at rest relative to the observer
2 State that the mass of an object resists change from its state of rest or motion (inertia)
3 Know that weights, and therefore masses, may be compared using a beam balance or equal-arm balance
4 Describe how to determine mass using an electronic balance
5 Describe how to measure weight using a force meter
6 Define gravitational field strength as force per unit mass; recall and use the equation
gravitational field strength = weight/mass
g = W/m
and know that this is equivalent to the acceleration of free fall
7 State that a gravitational field is a region in which a mass experiences a force due to gravitational attraction.

1.4 Density
1 Define density as mass per unit volume; recall and use the equation
density = mass/volume
ρ = m/V
2 Describe how to determine the density of a liquid, of a regularly shaped solid and of an irregularly shaped
solid which sinks in a liquid (volume by displacement), including appropriate calculations
Mass
• The mass of an object is the measure of the amount of matter in it. It can be stated that mass is a
measure of the quantity of matter in an object at rest relative to an observer.
Or
• It is defined as amount of matter packed in a body.
• The standard unit of mass is the kilogram (kg) and until 2019 was the mass of a piece of platinum–iridium
alloy at the Office of Weights and Measures in Paris.
• It is now based on a fundamental physical constant which can be measured with great precision.
• The gram (g) is one-thousandth of a kilogram.
1 g  1/1000kg  1003 kg  0.001 kg
• The term weight is often used when mass is really meant. In science the two ideas are distinct and
have different units. The confusion is not helped by the fact that mass is found on a balance by a
process we unfortunately call ‘weighing’!
• Weight: a gravitational force on an object that has mass.
• There are several kinds of balance used to measure mass. In the beam balance (equal-arm balance) the
unknown mass in one pan is balanced against known masses in the other pan. In the lever balance a
system of levers acts against the mass when it is placed in the pan. A direct reading is obtained from the
position on a scale of a pointer joined to the lever system.
• Mass resists a change in its motion; if an object is at rest, it remains at rest unless it is acted on by a force.
This property of mass is called inertia.
mass
• There are several kinds of balance used to measure
mass.
• In the beam balance (equal-arm balance) the unknown
mass in one pan is balanced against known masses in
the other pan.
• In the lever balance a system of levers acts against the
mass when it is placed in the pan. A direct reading is
obtained from the position on a scale of a pointer joined
to the lever system. An electronic balance is shown in
Figure
Weight
• It is the force with which earth attracts
everybody towards its center.
• For an object above or on the Earth’s
surface, the nearer it is to the center of
the Earth, the more the Earth attracts it.
Since the Earth is not a perfect sphere
but is flatter at the poles, the weight of
a body varies over the Earth’s surface. It
is greater at the poles than at the
equator.
• When a mass experiences a
gravitational force we say it is in a Mathematically
gravitational field. Weight is the result Weight = mass x gravitational acceleration
of a gravitational field acting on a mass: W=mg
weight is a vector quantity and is
measured in newton (N).
Gravitational field strength
• The gravitational field strength is defined as the force acting per unit
mass.
• Gravitational field strength is a vector; it has both magnitude and
direction. Its direction is the same as the gravitational force.
• Rearranging the equation W = mg gives
• g = W/m
or
• gravitational field strength =weight/mass
Density
• Density is defined as mass per unit volume
• Its units are kg/m3
• Density=mass/volume
• D=m/v
• Smaller units of density is g/cm3
• Conversion is given as 1000xg/cm3=kg/m3
Simple density
measurements
If the mass m and volume V of a substance are known, its density can be
found from ρ  m/V.
Regularly shaped solid
The mass is found on a balance and the volume by measuring its
dimensions with a ruler.
Irregularly shaped solid: volume by
displacement
Use one of these methods to find the volume of a pebble or glass stopper,
for example. The mass of the solid is found on a balance. Its volume is
measured by one of the displacement methods shown in Figure 1 In
Figure 2 the volume is the difference between the first and second
readings. In Figure 2 it is the volume of water collected in the measuring
cylinder.
1 a Choose which of the following definitions for density is correct.
A mass/volume
B mass  volume
C volume/mass
D weight/area [1]
b Calculate
i the mass of 5 m3of cement of density 3000 kg/m3 [3]
ii the mass of air in a room measuring 10 mx5.0 mx2.0 m if the density of air is 1.3 kg/m3 [3]
[Total: 7]
2 a Describe how you could determine the density of a liquid. [4]
b An empty beaker is weighed and found to have a mass of 130 g. A measuring cylinder contains 50 cm3 of
an unknown liquid.
All the liquid is poured into the beaker which is again weighed and found to have a mass of 170 g. Calculate
the density of the liquid. [4]
[Total: 8]
3 a A block of wood has dimensions of 10 cm  8 cm  20 cm.
i Calculate the volume of the block in cubic metres. [2]
ii The block is placed on a balance and found to weigh 1.2 kg. Calculate the density of the block in kg/m3. [3]
b When a golf ball is lowered into a measuring cylinder of water, the water level rises by 30 cm3 when the ball
is completely submerged. If the ball weighs 33 g in air, calculate its density in kg/m3. [3]
[Total: 8]
inertia
• Inertia is the reluctance of a body to change its state of rest or
uniform motion.
• It is dependent upon the mass of an object. Greater the mass greater
the inertia and vice versa